Zim's Smeet
by DaliousK
Summary: When the Tallests assign Zim a smeet to care for as punishment, he finds himself growing attatched to it; When the day comes for her to leave Earth and join the Armada, is Zim ready to let her go, especially with a vengeful Dib out for her blood? T-Gore
1. Opal

1/1/2011 For: Killer Doodle Bug & OHP  
>"Hmm, lets see who's next.." Red murmured, flipping through the pages on his clipboard. Purple sat in the throne beside him, stuffing his face with chips and laughing at the Invader Slacks as he cried. The screen went black as Red prepared to call out the next victim on the list.<br>"Next we have…Invader Tenn, on planet Meekrob," Red said in a low voice, which the awaiting Irken crew member did not hear, "Tenn! NOW!" Red yelled, making the Irken jump.  
>"Y-yes, my tallest." He responded in a shaky voice, then ran back to his station and began typing.<br>Red and Purple watched as the screen went from black, to red as the picture slowly fizzled in. Invader Tenn appeared on the screen moments later, looking confused.  
>"Greetings my dear Tallests, I am surprised to be hearing from you, is it probing day already?" She asked, her eyes switching from Red to Purple.<br>"Uh, no, actually we have a very important question for you, Tenn" Red grinned suspiciously. Tenn's nervous look was erased from her face as she broke out into a smile.  
>"Of course my Tallest, what is it?" Tenn asked excitedly. Red and Purple exchanged a knowing look.<br>"Well, Tenn," Purple smiled, "We've talked to the Control Brain, and it turns out, we have quite a few Invaders with missing work."  
>"M-missing work?" Tenn stuttered, looking nervous again.<br>"Oh yes, missing work, you see, it seems, there was an absence in community service hours with 30 of our Invaders. Almost all had the same amount of hours missing…at the same time." Red growled at her. Tenn gulped, looking away from their angry faces.  
>"Lets see…Invader Alexovich, Invader Chin, Invader Dooky, Invader El, Invader Flobee, Invader Gooch, Invader Grapa , Invader Groot, Invader Kim, Invader Koot, Invader Krunk , Invader Larb, Invader Lardnar, Invader Nen, Invader Pesto, Invader Poot, Invader Sklud, Invader Skoo, Invader Skoodge, Invader Skutch, Invader Slacks, Invader Slant, Invader Sneakyonfoota , Invader Spleen, Invader Sploodge, Invader Stink, Invader Tenn," Red sneered, glancing at Tenn, "Invader Tim, Invader Zee and finally, Invader Zim." Red and Purple both scowled together at the sound of Zim's name<br>"Do you have any explanation for all these absences?" Red went on, glaring deeply at her. Tenn's body shook and her antennae's twitched as she began to answer.  
>"W-well, I-I.."<br>"Well what Tenn? What exactly happened?" Red snarled, slamming his fist down on the arm of his throne. Tenn gulped again.  
>"You see, I-It was a j-joke-" She was once again cut off by Red.<br>"A joke? A joke? What is there to joke about Tenn? What so funny about the important role of an Invader?" Red demanded.  
>Tenn suddenly began to break down, she cried as she rushed through her words<br>"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I knew I shouldn't have done it! I told them it was a bad idea, I really did, but they wouldn't listen to me! They wouldn't listen! They told me it would be funny, they said it was no big deal!" Tenn sobbed as she went on, "They made me swear by the name of my Tallests not to tell, only El, Poot, Skoodge, Zee and I were the only ones who didn't want to do it! But they made us!" Tenn confessed with tears pouring from her eyes.  
>"What? Tenn, what happened?" Purple asked eagerly. Tenn choked on her sobs, trying to control herself before continuing.<br>"There was an idea to d-ditch community service," Tenn hiccupped, "S-so we did, we all went to Foodcourtia instead, and w-we cheated on our exams…we stole the answers from the professor's desk and pretended to have completed our community service hours," By then, Tenn was crying again, "I'm so sorry my Tallests, I never should have done it, I'm so sorry!" Red and Purple exchanged a look, then Purple spoke softly to Tenn.  
>"Tenn, you said 'there was an idea' who's idea was it Tenn? Who made you do it?" He asked carefully, not wanting to upset her again. Tenn looked up, her large ruby eyes were glazed over with tears.<br>She sniffled before answering, "Zim."

The Tallests sat motionless, they both felt the same emotion rapidly swelling inside them….anger. Of course it was Zim, why were they so surprised? Tenn looked away, ashamed that she had ratted on a fellow Irken Invader and classmate. Red stood up and began directing for someone to open a video communication line with Zim. Purple meanwhile, began trying to gain Tenn's attention again.  
>"Tenn, It was crucial for us to know this information, you have done good to your people Tenn. However, you have not completed your community service hours and you have cheated on your Invader's test. You are sentenced to Devastis to retake your test and make up your hours. Until then, you are no longer an Invader, leave Meekrob at once." Purple tried his hardest to maintain a calm voice, but he could still feel the anger bubbling inside him like acid.<br>Tenn nodded and bowed before the screen went black. Purple sighed, sitting back in his chair and closing his eyes. Red returned to his throne beside Purple, his figure was stiff and rigid, and his voice was dark and heavy. Red glared at Zim as he appeared before them on the screen with a smile. Purple refused to look at Zim, he was afraid of the sick coming up if he did.  
>"Oh, hello my Tallests, I wasn't expecting you," Red still continued to glare, not saying a word, "Um, that's ok! You've picked an excellent time to call, for I have an fascinating experiment going on! Yes! Look at this my leaders!" Zim moved from view to reveal a jar filled with green goo and a small red apple frozen inside.<br>"Yes, this…thing, was given to me by a so called 'lunch lady' with a mustache, it must be a message of some kind, she must know something." Zim squinted suspiciously at the apple and poked the jar with his finger.  
>"Zim." Red snarled dangerously. Zim's attention was brought to Red once again, as he straightened up and watched his leaders intently.<br>"Yes my Tallest?" Zim asked, folding his hands behind his back as he looked up at the two.  
>"It seems…Zim…that you've committed a serious crime." Red didn't try to hide the edge in his voce.<br>"HA! ZIM? CRIME? I think your confusing Zim with another Invader my Tallests." Zim smiled smugly. Red growled.  
>"NO ZIM, YOU! From what we understand, YOU have manipulated your fellow classmates and DOOMED their missions!"<br>"I don't know what your talking about my Tallest." Zim answered.  
>"You convinced your fellow Invaders to cheat on their tests, and leave their community service hours incomplete!" Purple yelled, startling Red and Zim.<br>"What? Zim did NO such thing!" Zim held his head up high and crossed his arms across his chest. How did they find out? Skoodge must've told! That traitor!  
>"We know it was you ZIM! And it's a CRIME! You will be given a horrible sentence." Red yelled angrily.<br>"What sentence will Zim receive? I am innocent!" He declared, expecting the Tallests to simply drop the subject.  
>"The clearly guilty Zim will be sent…..a smeet as punishment for his crime." Red said.<br>"WHAT? SMEET? NO! My Tallests please!" Zim pleaded, getting on his knees before the screen.  
>"Sorry Zim, your work on the smeet will me your make up for your missing community service hours, your smeet will be delivered right away. Oh, and take care of it, or you'll be sorry." Purple warned and cut the call short. Red turned to look at Purple, amusement in his eyes.<br>"Why a smeet?" Purple asked, picking up his chips again.  
>"Because, he's not a real Invader, why send him to Devastis to become one? Once he completed his tests and hours, his PAK would be re-encoded to Invader Class. This way, he'd be doing something to help for once." Red answered with a grin.<p>

Smeet? Smeet? Why? Oh no, this is going to completely jeopardize the mission! Smeet are evil and reckless! Having a smeet running around the base would be catastrophic! Not to mention Gir, Gir and a smeet together? Oh, god.  
>Just the thought alone was making Zim sick to his squeedlyspooch. He leaned over his desk and let his head fall. He closed his eyes and tried to let all his anger drain from his body.<br>Breathe…Just Breathe, It'll be ok, maybe it'll work out for your benefit….  
>Benefit? BENEFIT? ZIM cannot possibly get any kind of benefit from a useless smeet!<br>Relax…Just maybe….  
>Just maybe? Just maybe nothing! NOTHING, you hear me? NOTHING!<br>Zim sighed, opening his eyes to see Gir sitting under him and staring up at his face. Gir's large, blue eyes stared up into Zim's large ruby ones, unnerving the alien at the depth of Gir's stare.  
>Zim pulled his head up, and stood straight, glaring down at his robot.<br>"What Gir?" Zim hissed. Gir smiled up at him.  
>"Mastah, there was a package at the door so I wents to go gets it when da big head boy jumped outta no where and stole it!" Gir smiled and laughed, as if he'd just told a funny joke.<br>'Oh, and take care of it, or you'll be sorry' The words rang through his head in a matter of nano-seconds.  
>"The smeet!" Zim screamed, running to the lift across the room. When the lift finally reached the main floor, the computer spoke up.<br>"Eh…Zim, your disguise?"  
>Zim stopped, feeling the top of his head for his wig, all he felt was his long, rubbery antennas. Zim gasped, and began rummaging around in his pockets until he pulled out his wig and contacts. He then ran to the door, pulled it open and sprinted down the street. His head whipped left to right, looking up and down for any sign of Dib. Zim growled, and began running to Dib's house.<p>

"It must be some kind of…weapon," Dib said to himself, poking at the steel box that lay on his bed, "It definitely looks alien…how do I open it?" Dib suddenly got an idea, he ran over to his computer and called The Swollen Eyeball.  
>"Agent Dark Booty here." Answered a silhouetted figure with red eyes.<br>"Dark Booty! I have incredible evidence of alien life! I found this box on Zim's doorstep and-" Dib was cut off by Dark Booty's loud groan.  
>"Not again, Moth man." He sighed exhaustedly. Dib frowned.<br>"No, its different this time! Really! I found this on Zim's doorstep, it has weird alien writing all over it! And its metal! When was the last time you received a metal box from UPS?" Dib yelled excitedly.  
>"All right, all right, lets see it then." Dark Booty sighed. Dib smiled, turning around to pick up the metal box….that wasn't there. WHAT?<br>"Um….uh…" Dib stuttered, looking around the room, he caught sight of Zim running down the street with the box and hissed, "Zim."  
>Dark Booty cleared his throat, "Well Moth man?" Dib gulped, and slowly turned to see Dark Booty staring at him angrily.<br>"Um…he, he, can we re-schedule this?" Dib laughed nervously and closed his eyes while Dark Booty let out a string of cussing and yelling. When Dark Booty ended the call, Dib ran out of his room and flew down the stairs. When he made it outside, Zim was no where to be seen. Dib growled, and began running to Zim's house.

When Dib got to Zim's yard, he just ran right up to the door and pushed it open. Zim was standing in the middle of the living room, inspecting the metal box curiously.  
>"Zim!" Dib yelled.<br>"Dib-stink!" Zim yelled back, glaring at the pathetic human, "What are you doing in my base?"  
>"I'm here to take back my alien evidence to show The Swollen Eyeball!" Dib yelled, pushing Zim aside and lifting the box in his arms.<br>"I think NOT! You have NO idea as to what is inside that box!" Zim yelled, his voice had a hint of fear in it, If Dib dropped and killed the smeet, Zim would be killed by the Tallests themselves.  
>"Alien weapons? Or technology? I'll just send it to Mysterious Mysteries so they can open it and I'll be known as the greatest paranormal investigator ever!" Dib smiled, lost in his own world. The box began to shake.<br>"Be CAREFUL! You idiot! Put it down!" Zim yelled, running over to Dib and trying to pry the box from the human's arms.  
>"No, let go! Its mine!" Dib yelled back, struggling against Zim. The box began to shake harder, and glow an eerie purple.<br>"Leave it alone!"  
>"Let go!"<br>The box then began chipping, the metal recoiling in tiny curls, as if the metal was being peeled away. One by one, the box grew smaller and smaller until it was about the size of football. The purple light grew brighter and brighter every time another layer was peeled away. Only one layer remained, both Zim and Dib stopped fighting and looked down at the silver oval in their hands. It looked almost like liquid silver, ripples appeared across the ball every time there was movement from inside. Zim's instincts took over then, and he reached for the ball with one hand while the other held it up, along with both of Dib's. Zim's claws broke through the silver layer like a hot knife through butter. He tore the layer back slowly, carefully lifting the tiny football sized smeet with one hand and used both hands to cradle it against his chest. The smeet was a light, creamy lime green, it had toothpick sized black, rubber antennas' and small black claws protruding from the end of it's tiny hands. It's eyes were closed as it appeared to be sleeping.  
>Dib watched in shock at the exchange between Zim and the smeet, he didn't know much about alien children, but he wasn't stupid enough not to know what the thing in Zim's arms was. Devil's spawn.<br>"You're a father?" Dib yelled in shock, staring at the small green creature.  
>"Ssshhh!" Zim glared at Dib as he looked down at the small creature again. It was beginning to stir, it's small claws starting to twitch, "Of course not! Stupid human!"<br>"Than what's that?" Dib whispered harshly, pointing at the sleeping smeet.  
>"A smeet," Zim answered, "It's an Irken baby, and a new born at that. I'm supposed to care for it as punishment."<br>"Punishment? What did you do?" Dib asked confusedly. Zim glared at him, but didn't answer. He watched as the baby began to fidget and roll side to side in his arms.  
>"Ssshhh.." Zim soothed, rocking it in his arms gently. The smeet opened its tiny mouth and let out a strangled whine. Zim continued to soothe the baby by softly rubbing the sides of its small head and making a ticking sound with his tongue, which is the equivalent of 'shushing' in Irken native tongue. The baby opened it's tiny mouth again and let out another, long whine.<br>Dib watched in fascination and horror as Zim tended to the baby. Another alien on this planet? Now they're breeding them here? But he stayed silent as he watched the strange scene.  
>When the baby let out a third needy whine, Zim realized it must be hungry. It was born mere seconds before after all. He glanced at the metal scraps on the floor and saw a small packet of dried milk and a tiny PAK with 3 red dots on it. He'd have to install the PAK by hand? Zim picked up the packet and PAK with great care and walked over to the end table beside the kitchen door. The table transformed and opened a hole in the floor that held a floating circular lift, which he stepped onto.<br>Dib was left standing there in shock, his eyes still glued to the place where Zim and the smeet disappeared underground. Slowly, Dib walked backwards out the door and ran the rest of the way home to tell his dad and Gaz what he'd just seen.  
>Meanwhile, Zim laid out a few blankets on his examination table and settled the small smeet on them while he ripped open the packet and emptied it into a test beaker.<br>"Computer, what else is needed for this baby formula?" Zim asked lowly, trying not to wake the smeet. He was used to yelling at the computer so speaking to it in a normal voice was odd for him.  
>"¼ teaspoons of bifodobacterium infantis, ¼ teaspoon of alma powder and 2 teaspoons of raw agave nectar." The computer responded.<br>"…Heh?…" Zim replied, looking dumbfounded. The computer sighed, producing a blender out of no where. Two metal claws came down from the ceiling and began pouring powders, liquids and nectars into the blender. One claw snatched the beaker from Zim's hands and poured the formula into the blender, then put on the lid. Zim watched angrily as the blender made a loud whizzing noise and ran to comfort the smeet before it woke.  
>When the formula was done, the claws poured the milky liquid into the beaker and fastened it with a rubber cover. One claw handed the beaker to Zim as the other zoomed back up to the ceiling. Zim held the beaker above the baby's mouth, unsure of what to do.<br>"Like this." The computer said, playing several videos of mother's feeding their children bottles. Zim nodded and gently pushed the rubber end between the smeet's lips. The baby immediately caught the smell of milk and began hungrily sucking it down. Zim smiled. When the baby had drunk all the milk, Zim pulled the beaker back and set it down on the table beside him, then rocked the baby in his arms again. The baby made a gurgled choking noise then and began struggling.  
>"What's wrong?" Zim asked the smeet as he panicked. The computer then began to play videos of mothers burping their babies after a feeding. Zim lifted the smeet to his shoulder and incredibly softly, began patting its back. The baby gurgled again before letting out a soft burp that sounded more like a sigh. When Zim pulled the baby back, he realized that it had spit up some formula on his uniform and he groaned. The baby nuzzled his chest then, falling back asleep. Zim looked at the PAK on the table and began to think.<br>Would it hurt if I did it? I'm not a cold, unfeeling robot arm, I couldn't bear to hurt the thing…Speaking of…what is it?  
>Zim moved aside the blankets from the smeet's body and looked.<br>Nothing.  
>Zim walked over to his organ scanner and gently placed the baby under it.<br>"Computer, determine the gender of this smeet." Zim mumbled, watching the sleeping baby.  
>"Processing…" The computer replied, " The smeet is female."<br>Female? If I were to take this smeet as my own, which I'm NOT! I would have a daughter? Hmm….I like the sound of that….my daughter….my daughter-…..what will her name be? I must name her, yes? She's mine now, she has to have a name..  
>Zim picked up the smeet and cradled her in his arms. He gazed down at the small baby and smiled.<br>The baby suddenly opened her eyes for the first time. What Zim saw made him gasp, her eyes were wide, they were dark purple with flecks of pink and blue in them, they resembled an opal gemstone because of the different colors mixed in. Her eyes sparkled as she explored her surroundings. Zim knew immediately what to name the beautiful little smeet.  
>"Opal." He cooed to the smeet as she looked at his face and studied him. Opal cracked a small smile and snuggled into Zim's arms deeper as she prepared to sleep again.<br>Irkens need their PAKS to survive….but she hasn't passed and its been a lot longer than 10 minutes….would she be ok without one? She wouldn't have knowledge of Irken history or survival skills…..but maybe I could teach her…..but what if I do install it into her? The second she is without it, she'll have 10 minutes…..maybe, if I leave it off, she'll never have to worry about her life clock…  
>Zim watched Opal's face as she slept, and listened to her soft breathing.<br>She'll be ok….as long as I'm with her…I'll never let anything hurt her….my daughter….  
>*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*<p> 


	2. The Calling

1/2/2011 For: Invader Con 2011 & Connie  
>As the weeks passed, Zim found it progressively harder to keep up with skool. His work was incomplete, his attendance took a major blow when Opal arrived, and his average grades were straight F's at that point. But it didn't matter, Zim didn't care about skool, all that mattered now was his daughter. He greatly improved the base's security days after Opal's arrival, he also made sure to set better security in his lab and Opal's new bedroom (which was Zim's old storage room #3) and set restrictions on certain places in the house for Gir. Zim often worried about leaving Gir alone with his newborn smeet, simply to attend skool, but he also made sure that the computer was keeping a close watch on Gir and Opal. If anything were to occur, the computer would inform Zim immediately. That made him feel better, but still lost focus during class from his obsessive worrying.<br>Sleep was also a luxury he no longer had. He often had to stay up late to tend to Opal since she still couldn't sleep through the night and required constant attention and care. But it made Zim easily agitated and impatient when he didn't sleep for longer than half an hour (which was all he got lately). Just a few days ago, he'd snapped at the computer for taking an extra 2.5 seconds in making Opal's formula to make sure it wasn't too hot, and nearly killed Dib just the other day…  
>Zim looked distracted as he walked home, he was busy thinking of Opal, he always thought about her when he was away. Zim deeply hated that he had to go to Earth Skool when he had a helpless baby smeet at home. And being watched by Gir no less…that was even worse. He loved how her face lit up when he returned home. The only greeting he ever got was from his robo-parents who tried to shove soap down his throat. Thinking of her only made Zim that more eager to get home. However, his rarely happy thoughts were interrupted as Dib ran up beside him.<br>"What are you up to, alien?" Dib asked for the 67,982,257th time they've known each other.  
>"Going home." Zim replied. Dib glared at him.<br>"TO DESTROY THE WORLD?" Dib yelled. Zim growled, his footsteps turned into stomps as he tried to get away from the stupid Earth boy.  
>"NO!" Zim hissed.<br>"Then what are you up to?" Dib asked again.  
>"IM GOING HOME!" Zim repeated, "I have business to take care of! Now leave me be!"<br>"Ohhh….your still taking care of that THING aren't you?" Dib laughed. Zim growled but didn't respond, "Ha, it must suck to have to watch that thing ALL day and night!" He knew that Zim cared for the smeet, after all, Dib was there when Zim open the thing's…eh…egg. He saw how Zim looked at it.  
>Dib noticed how Zim's claws clenched at his last comment.<br>"Have you killed it yet Zim? Who's watching it? Your stupid robot dog? Yeah, its dead for sure." And with that, Zim snapped. Zim's hand closed around Dib's throat and pushed him up against the brick wall beside him. Dib gagged and choked as he (unsuccessfully) tried to pry Zim's claws from him. Zim only squeezed tighter and delighted at the sight of Dib turning blue from the lack of oxygen.  
>"Don't you EVER," Zim hissed dangerously, "Speak of her like that again!" Dib's movement began to slow and his grip on Zim's wrists loosened, almost going slack. Zim glared at Dib, memorizing the image of Dib on the verge of death before he released him.<br>Dib fell to the ground and grabbed his throat as he desperately dragged air into his lungs. Meanwhile Zim continued walking without even a single glance back. When Dib had finally regained some breath, he didn't dare run after Zim again.

"Zim!" Ms. Bitters snapped. Zim's head shot up, his eyes were droopy and heavy with sleep.  
>"Yes Ms. Bitters." Zim replied tiredly, his voice was thick with sleep.<br>"This is the 16th time you've fallen asleep in my class! After skool detention!" Bitters snapped. Zim's eyes went wide.  
>Detention? After skool? No. Who will watch Opal? I cant trust Gir to stay there with her for that long!<br>"I-I um, have a doctor's appointment after skool today Ms. Bitters." Zim said hopefully. Bitters sneered.  
>"Then re-schedule it! DETENTION!" She hissed. Zim grimaced deeply. What now?<br>Dib watched Zim's face carefully. He rubbed the deep imprints in his neck as he read the despair in Zim's eyes and grinned to himself. With the alien spawn guarded by an idiotic robot, destroying it will be no problem. He'd deal with Zim later…

Zim reluctantly trudged to after skool detention, His nerves were on edge, he couldn't think, all he could do was wait for the call from the computer saying that Opal's tiny neck was broken while Gir tried to play dress up with her, or that she had 20 waffles shoved down her delicate throat. Zim cringed, just the thought almost made him turn around and run home. When he reached the door, he stopped and got up on the tips of his toes to peer in the window. The only kids there were Willy, The letter M and Gaz. Gaz? What was she doing there? Zim sighed as he opened the door and trudged inside. He kept his head low as he walked to the last open seat by the window next to Gaz. She was busily playing her Game Slave 2 and didn't notice when Zim walked in until she saw his green skin from the corner of her eye. Zim slumped in the desk and let his head hit the wood with a loud 'thunk'. Gaz squinted open her right eye to peer at him. Zim hissed suddenly.  
>"Mind your business Dib-sister." He said. That angered Gaz.<br>"Shut up, Zim, what the hell is your problem?" She hissed back. He lifted his head to glare at her.  
>"What's my problem? What isn't my problem? What a stupid question to ask!" Gaz glowered even more.<br>"It was rhetorical you moron. What are you in here for anyway?" She asked, going back to her Game Slave 2.  
>"I slept during class." Zim growled in anger, though he was more angry at himself.<br>"Ha, how pathetic.." Gaz smirked. Zim looked at her with a scowl.  
>"Oh yeah? What about you?" He challenged.<br>"I cut a girl's eye out." Gaz responded, pulling a pocket knife from her pocket to show him. Zim's eyes widened as he felt a wave of fear pass through him.  
>"Shouldn't you be in Earth prison then?" Zim asked.<br>"Nah, she'll be ok." Gaz replied, tucking the knife back in her pocket and directing her full attention back to her game.  
>"Eh…ok.." Zim looked away slightly confused.<br>"Aren't you supposed to be watching your kid or something?" Gaz whispered, glancing at the other children and the security drones.  
>"Yes," Zim replied hesitantly, "Why?" Gaz glanced around the room, then leaned the smallest bit closer to Zim.<br>"So who's watching it?" She asked.  
>"Gir and the computer….why do you ask these-" He was cut off.<br>"Hmm…well, as much as I hate you and Dib both, I cant stand to see Dib happy, and you look pretty miserable already, so I'll tell you that Dib's headed over to your…er, house, right now. He's going to capture the alien and take it to my dad. He was bragging about it all night, wouldn't shut the hell up." She grumbled the last part, but Zim stopped listening after 'capture the alien'. He quickly jumped out of his seat and ran over to a security drone.  
>"I have to go to the restroom!" He nearly screamed at it. Three lights blinked at him in return.<br>"Access Denied." It said. Suddenly a huge metal door slid over the first and strapped itself down with several barbed wires running across it.  
>"I….eh….I have…mid life crisis!" Zim screamed, saying the first thing to pop into his mind. The lights blinked at him three times, then said.<br>"Access Granted." And with that, the wire and metal door slid open and out of sight. Zim sighed and ran out, stopping at the threshold to look back.  
>"Zim is in your debt Gaz-creature." Zim said breathlessly as he turned around and sprinted for the exit. Gaz simply ignored him and uttered, "Idiot."<p>

Zim made it to his base in 3 minutes flat, he could've called Gir for a ride, but he didn't know if the robot was fighting Dib or protecting Opal, he couldn't take the risk, so he used his pak legs to quickly get through the town, occasionally having to stop and walk on foot when a human was near.  
>Zim burst through the door and looked around desperately. The living room was eerily silent. The couch was knocked over and the room was partially dark, with the exception of the sunlight outside.<br>"Co-computer?" Zim panted, running inside, completely forgetting to close the front door.  
>"Master!" Came a voice from somewhere underground. Seconds later, Gir rose from the trashcan and tripped over to Zim. Gir's left eye was gray and smashed, making it harder for him to see.<br>"Master! The-the big headed kid! He's hurtin' the baby!" Gir cried in a way he only would about his tacquitos. Zim ran past the robot and over to the trash can.  
>"Come Gir!" Zim yelled as he descended lower into his base. Gir jumped in and landed face first beside him on the lift.<br>"Why didn't you try to stop him?" Zim asked. Gir's antennae drooped.  
>"He blinded me with da silver!" Gir pouted, pointing to his eye. "I tried master." He added.<br>Zim nodded, "Good job Gir." He said for the first time, making Gir smile widely. Finally, the lift stopped in a hall. Zim ran for Opal's room with Gir right behind him. When they entered, Zim growled deeply, angrily. Dib was hurriedly stuffing papers in his bag and had a screaming Opal in his arms. Dib looked up when he saw Zim and Gir in the doorway and his eyes widened.  
>"I…eh….." Dib quickly tried to think up and excuse, but with a baby screaming its head off in his ear, it was hard to think.<br>"I've got weapons!" Dib yelled, pulling out a long, silvery knife from his bag, probably the one he used on Gir. What was with that family and knives? Zim just kept glaring at him, his teeth bared and antennae pulled back. Opal's loud screeches were only fueling Zim's anger.  
>"Z-Zim." Dib stuttered, backing up against Opal's crib and shakily holding up the knife in front of him.<br>"Zuh-Zuh-Im!" Came a loud cry. At first, Zim thought it was Gir, but as he glanced down, he saw Gir was in defense mode, glaring at Dib with his one red eye. Dib's eye widened even farther as he looked down in his arms and saw Opal reaching out for Zim with a terrified expression on her face.  
>"Gir!" Zim yelled, staring at Opal. Suddenly, Gir launched at Dib, knocking him to the ground and catching Opal smoothly with one hand. Gir handed her over to Zim then began kicking, hitting, punching, and biting Dib.<br>"AH! OK, IM SORRY! PLEASE STOP!" Dib screamed as he felt Gir scratch his face up, making it bleed.  
>Zim ignored them, quickly leaving the room to get Opal away from the bloody scene. She was still in the red cotton human baby night clothes Zim left her in. She had acid leaking from her eyes (Irken equivalent to tears) as she cried. Zim held her close, rocking her soothingly back and forth in his arms and shushing her in Irken tongue.<br>He moved down the hall with her, trying to block out the sound of Dib's cries and screams, as well as to protect Opal from them. Moments later, she calmed and began whimpering.  
>"Ssshhh…." Zim soothed, rocking her. He scanned her visible flesh for cuts or damage of any kind. Nothing. Thank Irk.<br>"Zuh-Zummm.." Came a small squeaky voice. Zim looked down at her in surprise and grinned widely.  
>"Zim…" He said slowly, coaxing her to try again. She rubbed her eyes, looking up at him in confusion. One of her antennae twitched slightly and she somewhat smiled back.<br>"Zzzmmmmm…"She mumbled, looking up for approval. Zim walked them into the room across the hall, his lab. He sat down in his chair as he spoke to her.  
>"Ziiiiiiimm…" He said softly.<br>"Zeerrrmmm..," She tried quietly, "Zuuulllmmm….Ziiimmmm…" At that, Zim nodded in approval and rocked her again in his arms. He raised one hand from under her and poked her forehead gently with his gloved index finger.  
>"Opal.." He smiled. Opal looked up at his finger and then back at his face.<br>"Ooooo…." She tried.  
>"Oooopppppaaaaalllll…" He made sure to sound out each letter, then let her try.<br>"Ppppuulllll…pppulll…ooooppppuuulll…"  
>"OoPPPaalll." Zim encouraged.<br>"Ooooopppulll….oooppull.."  
>"No, like this, OoooPppAAAAllll…." Zim corrected.<br>"Oooopppuuhhhaaalll…ooooopppaaalll…"  
>"Very good." Zim smiled, stroking her forehead affectionately. Opal smiled, her wide purple eyes stared at his face, trying to memorize it. Opal's gaze was broken when Gir came strutting in, still looking angry.<br>"Master, the human is unconscious, what shall I do with him?" Gir asked in a deep voice.  
>"Just break his glasses and drop him off at his house…on the doorstep." Zim commanded. Gir smiled.<br>"Yes, sir." Then saluted and walked out.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~1 YEAR LATER*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Daad, DAD!" Opal ran around the hall as she called his name. She stopped as she heard the t.v. being watched upstairs and smiled. Opal stood on the lift, going up until she stopped in the kitchen. When she looked up, she saw Gir sitting there giggling with joy at the TV. A year ago, when Opal was a baby, a human named Dib tried to capture her. He had even broke Gir's eye and cut the computer's power. Gaz however, had Zim's trust, and was allowed to regularly visit Opal. Since the attack, Gir was like Opal's guardian, always looking out for her and keeping her company. He was Opal's best friend.  
>"Hi Gir! Have you seen dad?" She asked, skipping up to him. Gir turned to look at her with a smile.<br>"Oooh…he down in da lab." Gir replied, actually giving her a valid answer, it angered Zim that he only did that with Opal.  
>"Thanks!" She grinned, turning around to take the lift back down to Zim's lab. She hummed tunelessly as she walked down the hall before finally stopping at the lab door. She heard some muffled chatter inside and stopped to listen, pressing her head to the door to try to pick up the words.<br>"But my Tallests-" Zim was saying, in a desperate tone. He sounded sad…why?  
>"No Zim, she's not even yours." One of the Tallest replied. Opal had never spoke to nor seen the Tallests, but was told about them by Zim as a baby.<br>"But-"  
>"No, this is serious Zim, she is a member of the Irken Empire, not your own personal entertainment." The other interrupted. Opal grew angry. Why wouldn't they listen to him?<br>"Or course she isn't, but she means a lot to me, my Tallest. I raised her, we spend everyday together! I cannot possibly allow her to-" Zim was once again interrupted.  
>"To what Zim? To have a life? To acquire a career and join the Great Armada?"<br>Zim was silent.  
>"Your JOB was to raise this smeet, that is all. Besides, it was supposed to be a punishment." The one speaking had a hint of anger and boredom in his voice.<br>"I know my Tallest but-" Zim tried to say.  
>"Zim." One said, silencing him.<br>"Alright…how about this? You send her to Devastis to take her career aptitude test. If she is suitable for Food Services or Foreign Research, she may be sent back with you to acquire a job on your planet. But, if she is assigned to anything along the lines of Irken Elite, War General, Great Armada Weaponry Management, etc…then she must stay here to finish her schooling and become a citizen. Understood?"  
>"My Tallests…I truly appreciate your offer, but she is very intelligent and talented, I am most certain she will not be assigned to anything as pathetic as food services.." Zim said quietly.<br>"Well maybe not, but either way, you cannot keep her there Zim, as I said before, she is not yours."  
>Zim was quiet once again.<br>"I understand my Tallests…I shall inform her." Zim mumbled so quietly Opal had to strain to hear.  
>Suddenly it was quiet in the lab. Opal was beyond confused. Why did they want her to leave? This was her home. Then she heard footstep headed toward her and panicked. Quickly running back down the hall, she stopped and began walking toward the lab, trying to act as if nothing had happened. The lab door slide open and a very tired looking Zim wandered out with a hand to his head.<br>"Hi dad!" Opal smiled, running up to him cheerily. She must've startled him because he visibly jumped at the sound of her voice.  
>"Oh, hi gem." He smiled. Zim had stared calling her that after she turned 5 months old, he had gotten her an Irken hand made Black Opal Gem necklace, the exact same colors as her eyes. She never took it off.<br>"Hi, so I wanted to tell you something!" She smiled, completely forgetting about Zim's conversation with the Tallests. Zim smiled faintly.  
>"Yes?" He asked. Opal grinned, she'd been planning this for months, and with the computer's help, got enough information about it to decide its what she really truly wanted.<br>"I want to be an Invader! Like you!" She beamed up at him, her shiny white teeth showing. Zim's face fell a little, but he quickly tried to cover it.  
>"That's Great! I'm so proud of you." He replied halfheartedly. He was proud, but didn't want her to leave, nor did he want her to an Invader, apparently it wasn't as great a job as the Irken military promised. Of course Opal hadn't missed the slight disappointment in his eyes, but for his sake, she pretended not to have seen it.<br>"Thanks, I hope the Tallests assign me a planet right next to Earth so I wont be far away." She smiled.  
>"Yeah," Zim smiled. "Lets go see what Gir's doing kay?" He quickly changed the subject. She nodded in understanding. They took the lift upstairs and walked over to Gir, who was still in his place on the couch.<br>They both took their normal places on the couch, Zim on the left, Opal in the middle, and began watching a Bloaty's Pizza Hog commercial. Suddenly, the door bell rang. Opal smiled, knowing it was more than likely just Gaz, but she noticed how Zim froze at the sound.  
>"I'll get it!" Opal announced, jumping up and running to the door.<br>"Hi aunt Gaz!" She said. Zim sighed and relaxed, sinking farther into the couch.  
>"Hi Opal." Gaz actually smiled at her. Gaz. Smiling? Weird. But as she learned of Opal's apparent hatred for Dib, she grew to like Opal, and occasionally gave her some 'How to Hate Everyone' lessons.<br>Opal pulled Gaz inside and closed the door after her. Opal barely made it past Gaz's shoulder, in Earth years Opal was 1 and a half, but in Irken years, she was almost 9. Gaz was only 11, Dib, 12 and Zim, 96 (In Irken Years) and 12 in Earth years.  
>"Zim" She greeted, acting more 'Gaz' like.<br>"Gaz-human." Zim replied, ignoring her and continuing to watch TV. They never actually spoke since last year when Gaz had warned him about Opal, but neither actually cared, as long as Gaz made sure Dib wasn't coming up with any more stupid schemes to expose Zim and Opal, Zim was fine with her presence. Dib was apparently too frightened of Gir to return to Zim's base. He spent 3 weeks in the hospital from Gir's beating, saying he was hit by a car. He had internal bleeding and a slight concussion, but he was fine now, just crazy.  
>"Aunt Gaz, aunt Gaz! I'm going to be an Invader like dad! I want to be an Invader!" Opal smiled. Gaz glanced at Zim, even the human Earth girl knew being an Invader was no honor.<br>"Oh, that's great, maybe you can take over this planet since Zim is doing such a lousy job." Gaz smirked. Zim shot her a nasty glare, but continued to ignore her.  
>"Nah, I'll let you live aunt Gaz, I'll just have to conquer a nearby planet instead." Opal grinned.<br>"Sounds good," Gaz replied, not really listening. "I actually came by to talk to Zim, Opal, but I'll come by tomorrow if you want." Gaz smiled weakly. Opal face fell a little.  
>"About what?" She asked curiously.<br>"Er….video games." Gaz stated it a little more like a question. Opal understood, she knew they weren't going to talk about video games. It must have something with Dib.  
>"Ok." Opal replied with a smile. She was quite good at hiding her emotions. Gaz smiled, Zim was already standing, waiting for her at the end table lift.<br>"Stay here Opal, no listening, got it? Computer, make sure Opal doesn't get down here." Zim commanded, stepping into the lift with Gaz.  
>"Yeah, whatever." The computer replied. Zim rolled his eyes. The second the end table slid back in place, Opal ran into the kitchen and lifted the 'Earth Food Rocks!' Poster behind the table and watching the hidden TV screen.<br>"Computer?" Opal asked sweetly.  
>"Sure thing kiddo." Seconds later, the screen fuzzed until it focused and showed Zim and Gaz standing in front of each other talking quietly. Opal turned up the volume and watched carefully.<br>"Why?" Zim asked her.  
>"I don't know Zim, all I know is he's been planning this for months." Gaz replied. Zim looked thoughtful, then raised one eye, making it wider than his other, squinting one.<br>"What are we going to do?" He asked. Gaz just shook her head sadly.  
>"I don't know, we have to get her out somehow, get her away." Gaz mused. Zim's antennae lowered against his head and he looked down at his feet.<br>"I know where…" He said quietly. Gaz looked up.  
>"Where?" Zim looked angry, sad and regretful at the same time.<br>"I-I talked to my leaders today," Zim started, "They want to take Opal back now, she's 'officially certified to become an Irken citizen' now. They are requesting her to be on Devastis next week."  
>"Is that a problem?" Gaz asked. Zim glared at her.<br>"YES! What if she is assessed as a Royal Guard? Or a Supreme Irken Court Lord? She wont be allowed to come back! I'd never see her.." He said the last part quietly. Gaz looked thoughtful.  
>"Alright, alright. I understand, but…" Gaz suddenly looked up smiling.<br>"But?" Zim repeated looking impatient.  
>"Well-" Gaz started but was cut off by the computer.<br>"Eh…sir, incoming package from CallNowia." The computer said.  
>"What's that?" Gaz asked.<br>"Opal's Irken uniform, she has to wear it to Devastis," Zim sighed. "Computer, let me know when it is 3 miles away from the base."  
>"Ok." The computer replied in a bored voice.<br>"Listen Gaz, we'll finish talking later, I have a lot of work to do." He said with clear exhaustion in his tone.  
>"Sure." Gaz said, walking back over to the lift. Opal quickly turned off the TV, fixed the poster and ran into the living room just in time to see Zim and Gaz enter. She nervously walked over to the couch and sat next to Gir, trying to look casual.<br>Opal said her goodbyes to Gaz, and tried to act like normal, but inside, the conversation between Zim and Gaz was deeply bothering her. From what she knew, she was leaving next week…possibly forever. With two driving forces: The Tallests, and Dib. So…now what? What was she to do? If she left to Devastis, she might never come back, she would never see Zim, Gir, Computer, or Gaz again. She couldn't leave them, never. But if she didn't leave, the Tallests might just send someone to take her away anyway, and now Dib was after her? Great.  
>A million thoughts ran through her head all in a few seconds, she thought fast, trying to build some kind of escape plan, but it was useless, she was doomed no matter where she went.<p>

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Dib sat in his dark room alone. The moonlight shone through his window, making the room somewhat visible. Dib's room was a mess, there were papers everywhere, some lying perfectly flat against the carpet and desk, others crumpled and thrown, the same kind which were currently overflowing the small trashcan in the corner. There were tipped over boxes reading "ZIM FILES", and others reading "EVIDENCE". Dirty dishes were scattered around the room as well as moldy pieces of clothing and broken shards of glass. Dib glared up at the ceiling, thinking. He lay in his bed, half covered in the sheets, hands behind his head. Plans such as his require great concentration and time, he'd been lying in that exact same position for about 7 hours now, with the same thoughts still running through his mind.  
>How? When? What's the best way? Who to take out first? Would Gaz turn on me?<br>Dib worried, sure, but his thoughts were mostly dark, and violent. He would destroy her, somehow. Dib smiled, a sick, demented smile as he fantasized about how his plan would turn out.

*Into Dibby Dream Land*  
>Dib snuck up to Zim's base at exactly 3:40 am. Zim's defenses were down for exactly 5 minutes every Sunday night between 3:40-3:45 am. Dib had to act quickly if he were to try infiltrate Zim's base without being detected.<br>Dib made it to the window and pressed his body up against the wall as he got to his feet. Quickly, Dib peeked in the window, seeing only Gir sitting on the couch with a bag of popcorn watching TV. Dib glared at him. Slowly, Dib slid over to the door, but just before opening it, he pulled a gun out from his jacket packet and grinned.  
>Dib burst through the front door, giving Gir only enough time to turn his optics and body red before being shot 2 times in his head and 2 in his body. Not taking chances with the robot waking up, Dib walked over to the sparking metal body and crushed its head with his boot, hearing a whizzing as it died. Dib felt a triumphant rush, feeling confident, he headed over to the lift, knowing Zim and Opal would be down there.<br>As he walked through the dark hallway, he saw a light blue light coming in from under a door at the end hall. Holding his gun up in preparation, Dib almost ran to the room.  
>"Dib?" A voice yelled from behind him. Dib turned, seeing Zim standing in the hall, staring at him. The room that Zim had come out of was lit up in flashing white light, he must've been working on something in his lab.<br>"Oh…Zim." Dib said in a friendly tone, walking up to Zim and pulling out his gun with a wicked smile.  
>1 shot.<br>Dib hit Zim in his leg. With a cry of pain, Zim used his pak legs to bring himself up to the ceiling, hiding between the tubes and wires. Dib smiled, lowering his arm, and closing his eyes, waiting. Seconds later, Zim clawed into Dib's back, obviously trying to be a surprise attack. Bringing up his arm, Dib backed up to the wall and smashed Zim's face with his elbow. Zim's face was covered in dark green blood, a pleasant sight to Dib. Opening his eyes, Zim growled, grabbing a hold of Dib's neck and began digging his claws into his throat as deep as he could.  
>2 shots.<br>Zim groaned, looking down, seeing that Dib had left a bullet hole in his stomach. Blood oozed from it, pooling on the floor, creating a reflection which Zim could see his own, scared expression. Dib chuckled, bringing Zim's attention back up to Dib's face, just in time to see the evil flash across the human's eyes before..  
>3 shots.<br>Zim was dead. Dib dropped Zim's lifeless body to the floor, to rot in his own puddle of blood. Stepping over the mess, Dib made his way to the room at the end of the hall. Time seemed to move slowly, it seemed like hours before Dib was in front of the door, throwing it open. What Dib saw, made him gasp, not even leaving him a last word or thought, Opal raised a large, silver gun to Dib's forehead and everything was black.

*Now Leaving Dibby Dream Land, Thanks For Visiting! Be Sure to Purchase a T-Shirt on Your Way Out*

Dib sat up, gasping. He'd fallen asleep while thinking of his plan. Some part of him was happy it was a dream, another part was disappointed. He'd been killed by an alien child, how could that be? Dib glared at a piece of old pizza on the floor. That would not happen.  
>Dib brought his hand to his face, feeling the scar that was left by that stupid little robot, the scar the ran from the side of his eye, down to his neck. The robot had almost killed him, it had left a large gash down his throat, but thankfully, it didn't cut deep enough.<br>He would pay, Zim would pay, She would pay, even Gaz would be ridden of if he had to. Once all were taken care of, Dib would be known as the one to discover the monsters, he would be forever respected.  
>Too bad he would have to turn them in dead and rotting. Dib smirked, closing his eyes, and lying back down in bed.<p>

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


End file.
